Shaun Derry admits he looks back on his two spells at Crystal Palace with fond memories, which he believes have stood him in good stead for his future in football.

The 40-year-old had two separate stints with the Eagles during his playing career, playing almost 100 times for the club between 2002 and 2005 after joining from Portsmouth, before moving on from south London to join Leeds United.

But he was back with the Eagles in the 2007-08 season, rejoining Palace on loan from the Whites, before making the move permanent in January 2008.

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Reflecting specifically on the season in the Championship when Palace went into administration and plunged from play-off hopefuls to relegation candidates, he said it was a challenging time for him and his team-mates for various reasons.

However, he says he takes pride in what the club achieved that season, with a 2-2 draw at Hillsborough on the final day of the season ensuring Palace survived in the Championship.

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“I think that season in itself I played every single minute of every game.

“The cause of staying in the league was so huge. I remember for six or seven games, because of the cut off for the bookings, I couldn’t actually make a tackle!

“All of the games took on more significance because we just couldn’t go down.

“People were leaving and we just didn’t have money for the last part of the season and we managed to get the draw against Sheffield Wednesday at Hillsborough, and that completely transformed the club.

Darren Ambrose celebrates his goal with Shaun Derry during the Coca-Cola Championship match between Sheffield Wednesday and Crystal Palace at Hillsborough on May 2, 2010. (Photo by Matthew Lewis/Getty Images)

“I think if Crystal Palace had gone down it would have been very difficult to recover. Those boys who played in that game at Hillsborough are the ones that have allowed that football club to survive, and I’m very proud to have been part of that.